n.1. A structure that can be swung, drawn, or lowered to block an entrance or a passageway.
2. a. An opening in a wall or fence for entrance or exit.
b. The structure surrounding such an opening, such as the monumental or fortified entrance to a palace or walled city.
3. a. A doorway or walkway in a terminal, as at an airport, through which passengers proceed when embarking or disembarking.
b. A waiting area inside a terminal, abutting such a doorway or walkway.
4. A means of access: the gate to riches.
5. A mountain pass.
6. The total paid attendance or admission receipts at a public event: a good gate at the football game.
7. A device for controlling the passage of water or gas through a dam or conduit.
8. The channel through which molten metal flows into a shaped cavity of a mold.
9. Sports A passage between two upright poles through which a skier must go in a slalom race.
10. A logic gate.
tr.v. gat·ed,
gat·ing,
gates 1. Chiefly British To confine (a student) to the grounds of a college as punishment.
2. Electronics To select part of (a wave) for transmission, reception, or processing by magnitude or time interval.
3. To furnish with a gate: "The entrance to the rear lawn was also gated" (Dean Koontz).